Kubota, Sumitomo Chem aim to lop 30% off rice-growing costs

Kubota and Sumitomo Chemical have teamed up on a farming technique that should make rice around one-third less expensive to grow, pooling their expertise to lighten workloads and secure future demand for their own agricultural machinery and chemical products.

Japan's biggest agricultural machinery builder and top agrochemical producer aim to make the practice of direct seeding cheaper and easier, with a target date of 2020.